Pebble Beach was cornerstone for career of Mark O’Meara

RIDGELAND, S.C. – Dustin Johnson appears to be heating up just in time for summer. After missing the cut in two of his last four starts, including the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island, and failing to register a top-10 finish since The Genesis Invitational in February, world No. 1 Johnson quickly established himself on the leaderboard at the Palmetto Championship at Congaree. Despite failing to birdie any of the course’s three par-5s, Johnson made six birdies – the last a chip-in from 81 feet at the ninth hole – and no bogeys for an opening-round 65. He was tied at the top with Doc Redman amongst the morning wave of finishers. Jhonattan Vegas (66) bogeyed his last hole and was one back. “Yeah, I mean, you know, I’m playing well,” Johnson said of his recent form, which has seen him fall to 19th in the FedExCup. “I feel like I’ve been playing pretty good all year, just, like I said, I haven’t putted well, short game’s been a little off, but today I missed it in the right spots when I did miss it, but hit a lot of real quality iron shots and gave myself a lot of looks.” Johnson, a 24-time winner on the PGA TOUR but never in his home state of South Carolina, took some time away from the game – “Clearing my head,” he said – after missing the cut at the PGA. But he got right back to work last week. He came to Congaree ranked 106th in Strokes Gained: Putting but took just 23 putts in the steamy opening round. It was progress, even if that stat was slightly deceiving; several of his approaches trickled just onto the collar around the greens, and he was 7-for-7 in scrambling. Although pleased with the round, Johnson walked away thinking about the birdies that got away, like his putt from just 4 1/2 feet that missed the hole at the par-3 fifth hole. Still, he wasn’t complaining. And the coast-to-coast birdie to close things out on nine was a nice way to end it. He admitted he would’ve been happy just to get up and down; instead, he jarred his third shot from well left of the green for his final birdie. The last time he competed the week before a major was back in November, when he finished T2 at the Vivint Houston Open before flying to Georgia and winning the Masters. “I felt like I’ve been swinging well for a while now,” he said, “just haven’t really seen the results or seen the scores. Made a few putts, but, yeah, I mean just playing solid – finally put a round together. … Hopefully I can keep it rolling for the rest of this week.”

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How it works: Each week, our experts from PGATOUR.COM will make their selections in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf. Each lineup consists of four starters and two bench players that can be rotated after each round. Adding to the challenge is that every golfer can be used only three times per each of four Segments. Aside from the experts below, Fantasy Insider Rob Bolton breaks down the field at this year’s BMW Championship in this week’s edition of the Power Rankings. For more fantasy, check out Rookie Ranking, Qualifiers and Reshuffle. RELATED: Play Pick ‘Em Live THINK YOU’RE BETTER THAN OUR EXPERTS? The PGA TOUR Experts league is once again open to the public. You can play our free fantasy game and see how you measure up against our experts below. Joining the league is simple. Just click here to sign up or log in. Once you create a team, click the “LEAGUES” tab. Then click on “FEATURED,” and then on the PGA TOUR Experts league that populates. SEASON SEGMENT

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ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – The World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum released the names of 15 finalists who will be considered for class enshrinement in 2019. The list of finalists includes men and women representing four different countries, and consists of candidates from the following four categories: Male Competitor, Female Competitor, Lifetime Achievement and Veterans.   Below is the list of finalists (listed alphabetically by category). Male Competitor (4) Retief Goosen, South Africa Graham Marsh, Australia Corey Pavin, United States Hal Sutton, United States Female Competitor (5) Susie Maxwell Berning, United States Beverly Hanson, United States Sandra Palmer, United States Dottie Pepper, United States Jan Stephenson, Australia Lifetime Achievement (3) Peggy Kirk Bell, United States Billy Payne, United States Dennis Walters, United States Veterans (3) Jim Ferrier, Australia Catherine Lacoste, France Calvin Peete, United States Click here to download a bio and list of accomplishments for each finalist.   The list of finalists was handed down by a Selection Sub-Committee comprised of 20 individuals, including six World Golf Hall of Fame Members: Donna Caponi Byrnes, Juli Inkster, Hale Irwin, Nick Price, Curtis Strange and Karrie Webb. This group was responsible for overseeing the vetting process that commenced in June and culminated with the Sub-Committee’s selection of finalists that will be presented to the Selection Commission.   “The Selection Sub-Committee had a big task to complete, and every member is to be commended for their effort and commitment in choosing the 15 best candidates,� said Jack Peter, President of the World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum. “We are proud of the energy and thoroughness of the voting system and eagerly await the final results, which will be announced on October 10th.�   Before gaining consideration, each finalist met the necessary qualifications in his or her respective category by way of on-course accomplishments or by significant contributions to the game. Click here to learn more about the World Golf Hall of Fame criteria for Induction.   The Selection Commission, Co-Chaired by Hall of Fame Members Nancy Lopez, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Annika Sorenstam will assemble next week to discuss the merits and vote on the 15 finalists. Additionally, all living Hall of Fame Members provided personal input to the Selection Commission as it relates to the group of finalists.   To be inducted, an individual must receive approval from at least 75% of the Selection Commission. This group will ultimately elect the Class of 2019, which will be inducted in Pebble Beach, California on Monday, June 10, 2019, the week of the men’s U.S. Open Championship. The Induction Ceremony will take place at the Sunset Center in Carmel-by-the-Sea.   To learn more about the World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum and the Induction process, visit www.worldgolfhalloffame.org.

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